Tag Archives: Email
6 Easy Ways Learn about SKYPE & Mental Health Delivery
One of the TeleMental Health Institute LINKEDIN group members wrote me privately to ask me to draft an email that he can send to his state association listerv to help his colleagues learn more about Skype. Please let me know if there’s any other information you might need about practicing online. Marlene ~ Here are [...]
Full StoryMalpractice Insurance for Online Practice: What Does It Cover?
Questions about malpractice insurance might need to start with a clear reading of the definition of your scope of practice from your state or national website. For example, because I am in California, I will quote my state law for Marriage & Family Therapists http://www.bbs.ca.gov/licensees/psych_online.shtml, but I encourage you to read your own state code [...]
Full StoryAnonymity — Questionable Online Therapy Practice?
In a recent New York Times article, Dr. Carolyn Turvey suggested the need for collecting identifying information from patients. The author of that same article then quoted the opposing view of a spokeswoman for an online therapy company. The spokeswoman explained that 90% of therapists using their platform don’t collect identifying information, because “Patients with [...]
Full StoryDoes Video Contact with Clients or Patients Require HIPAA Compliance?
If a US-based company isn’t claiming HIPAA compliance, my tendency is to recommend against using them for the delivery of telepsychiatry, telepsychology, online therapy or online counseling in the US, until they make claims for which they can be held accountable by our federal consumer protection agencies. That includes email, chat rooms, telephone or videoconferencing.
Full StoryEmail, Chat Rooms or Skype for Mental Health: What about Mandated Reporting?
Licensed professionals are obligated to follow an accepted “standard of care” that included procedures to use for mandated reporting. First, that standard of care has not yet been expanded to include email, chat room or videoconferencing via public, unsecured VOIP-based platforms. Which companies use VoIP-based platforms for online video conferencing? Skype, Google Talk and Oovoo.
Full StoryEmail or Chat Room and Skype-based Counseling and Psychotherapy: The Professional Standard of Care
Our legal standard of care has not yet been expanded to include email, chat room or exclusive Skype-based counseling or psychotherapy. Until it is, practitioners using these telecommunication tools could find it difficult to defend themselves if something goes wrong.
Full StoryNew Practice Guidelines for the Use of Videoconferencing in the Delivery of Mental Health Services
Guidelines Approved for Delivery of Remote Mental Health Services
The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) announced the availability
of formal practice guidelines for the use of videoconferencing for the
delivery of mental health services.
These guidelines are designed to form the standard of care for such
services and will be the basis for the development and practice of
uniform, effective, safe and sustainable telemental health practices.
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